Biography

The research in my lab focuses on behavioral neuroendocrinology, the dynamic and complex interactions among hormones, brain and behavior. For group-living animals, an important determinant of individual fitness is the ability to adjust behavior and physiology in response to salient demands, challenges, and opportunities in the social environment. Our research investigates the processes by which animals accomplish this task, particularly the pivotal roles of the brain and endocrine system.

We are especially interested in the interactions between stress and reproduction. Much attention has focused on the potential role of stress in inhibiting fertility and reproductive behavior. In reality, however, the relationship between stress-related physiology and reproduction is more nuanced, highly complex, and bi-directional. Thus, we are investigating the cross-talk between stress-related hormones, neuropeptides, reproductive physiology, and reproductive behavior. This work has broad relevance to vertebrate reproductive and behavioral biology, as well as potential implications for wildlife conservation and clinical applications in humans.

We are also interested in the neural, hormonal, sensory, and experiential factors that govern parental care in fathers. The mechanistic basis of mammalian parental behavior has been well characterized in females but remains poorly understood in males. This work is providing new insights into the proximate control of paternal behavior in the 5-10% of mammalian species - including humans - in which fathers are actively involved in rearing their offspring.

My lab at UC Riverside focuses primarily on the California mouse (Peromyscus californicus), a socially and genetically monogamous rodent in which both mothers and fathers play critical roles in caring for pups. Other recent research includes studies of cooperatively breeding common marmoset monkeys (based at the National Primate Research Center at the University of Wisconsin - Madison) and Mongolian gerbils (at UC Riverside). Current research topics include: